EDITORIAL – Mayor grabs national spotlight

Recently appointed Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl is taking the national stage this week…. Recently appointed Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl is taking the national stage this week. Just days after the death of former Pittsburgh Mayor Bob O’Connor, Ravenstahl already scored a front-page story in the New York Times and a live interview with CNN, as well as an appearance on CBS’s “Late Show With David Lettermen,” airing tonight. With national attention heightened toward one of the youngest mayors ever to run an American city, we Pittsburghers are left wondering if he can live up to the hype.

It has only been 13 days since the tragic death of O’Connor, and many wonder whether the appearance of Ravenstahl on Letterman’s popular variety show crosses boundaries of taste. Is the mayor star struck or simply doing something he believed O’Connor would do: bringing attention to the city he loved so much?

Ravenstahl insists he is using the spotlight to focus national attention on Pittsburgh, not himself. “We now can talk nationwide about Pittsburgh moving forward, some of the great things that are happening here, and to be a young voice in that process is something I look forward to,” Ravenstahl reported to CNN’s Betty Nguyen.

Ravenstahl has made a bold move, but while his appearance on Letterman so soon after O’Connor’s death may be considered unorthodox, perhaps this is what the city needs. The mayor understands spin. Rather than hiding in his office to mourn the loss of a city leader, he is taking advantage of the national attention thrust upon him and is using it to redefine the image of Pittsburgh.

“We’re a lot different than we were 10, 15, 20 years ago. However, our image nationwide has not changed, and that’s something I hope to achieve with some of these nationwide interviews,” the mayor said.

Because of his age, the mayor exudes the type of youthful optimism that many tenured politicians have long since lost. He also puts two ideas together that are not normally associated: youth and Pittsburgh. Ravenstahl has vision for his mayorship of our city. He hopes his young voice will redefine some archaic stereotypes of Pittsburgh in favor of a more cutting-edge image. As college students currently residing in a city that is less than well known for its youth culture, it is exciting to see some national focus on the more happening aspects of Pittsburgh. Perhaps a national shift in opinions of our city will lead to a larger youth population in the future.

If nothing else, the national attention on Ravenstahl does add increasing pressure to the already scrutinized mayor. As he begins to make promises on a national front, Mr. Ravenstahl faces growing pressure to fill the large shoes left empty by O’Connor. While we applaud his move at reshaping the image of our city, youthful optimism and idealism will only take the mayor so far. He has now caught the nation’s eye and must perform accordingly.